Climbers Set to Clean Up Mount Everest

It’s time to clean up world’s highest mountain. Mount Everest is going to get a spring cleaning.

South Korean climber Han Wang Yong

A team of international climbers, under the leadership of famous South Korean climber Han Wang Yong, plans to begin a mission in April to clean up the tons of garbage on the Himalayan mountain.

Han Wang Yong has climbed 14 mountains that are over 8,000 meters high. Eight of them are in Nepal. He became the 3rd climber from Korea of to conquer all 14 Himalayan summits, and the 11th in the world.

Speaking at a press conference in Kathmandu Sunday, Han said that the mountaineers from South Korea, Japan, France, Italy and Austria, helped by Nepali Sherpa guides, will try to bring down as much as five tons of garbage from the higher camps.

It is estimated that there are 50 tons of garbage on the slopes of Mt. Everest.

They will start their journey from South Cole on Mt. Everest. Everest is scattered with tents, food wrappings, oxygen cylinders, ropes and, according to climbers, even bodies of people who have died while trying to scale the mountain.

The team leader says the climbers will try to bring down the bodies, but he says their main focus will be on the trash and items they’ll encounter. Published 2006-03-06 14:56 (KST)